A moving documentary feature on the life of Sexploitation film director Joe Sarno and his wife Peggy. Sarno reminisces about making films which pushed the viewer to think in more than just erotic ways. Narrative was of greater importance to him than explicit content and the sex in his films – which focused almost entirely on female pleasure - often led to complicated emotional situations; the effect of this was often a turnoff for those just seeking graphic stimulation.

“I made a film first, then put sex in it. The porno is what happens between the scenes,” Sarno says of his films and why he wasn’t interested in including hardcore sex. Sadly for Sarno, that was also what ended his movie career. This touching film explores Sarno’s attempt to rekindle his career by getting funding for a new feature and follows Peggy’s perspective as she tries to support his creative endeavours.

Directed by Wiktor Ericsson, 2013, Sweden, 80 minutes

Winner: Cinekink Audience Choice for Best Documentary Feature

NSFW

Intimate portrayal of a liaison that begins as a casual online hookup between two strangers and deepens into a more meaningful connection. Unusually for films dealing with casual sex as the subject matter, the female character in NSFW is not seen as pathological for exploring her sexual desire and she is in control (sometimes literally) of both the sex she has and her sexuality.

Also unique to this film is a focus on male nudity – including showing an erection on screen – and not a fixation with the female body. With a slow-moving, documentary shooting style, this feature manages to portray sex and intimacy in a realistic way, including the absurdity, complexity and domesticity that goes with it. A love story at its core, NSFW is a touching account of what can happen when two people open up more than just their hearts to each other.

Directed by Ryan Balas, 2013, USA, 69 minutes

Häppchenweise

Pitched as a “post-pornographic experiment”, Häppchenweise (its English title is Bit by Bit) is part art film and part reality TV: a fascinating and intimate observation of six twentysomethings who are brought together to talk about, and act upon, their sexuality. Filmed with mostly hidden cameras in the style of Big Brother, this is a film about real sex, with real people, and provides an intriguing insight into a group’s sexual behaviour when offered the opportunity and permission to explore that.

Beyond the forays into sex itself, what’s interesting is the self-awareness of the participants. They talk about anti-bourgeois behaviour, sexual liberation, and sexism within monogamy and ‘swingers’ events, and it becomes clear that agreeing to take part in the film is about wanting to contribute to a project which sets itself up as being anti-establishment. It makes a refreshing change from the artificiality of reality television and mainstream pornography.

Directed by Maike Brochhaus, Germany, 2013, 72 minutes

Highlights from the short film programme:

Another Happy Anniversary

Opening with a standard man-wants-a-threeway-with-another-woman narrative, this slick, well-produced short comedy throws up some surprises, and the outcome is both hilarious and unexpected.

Directed by Miranda Bailey, USA, 2013, 21 minutes

Winner: Cinekink Best Comedy Short

Ouroboros

Very smartly edited short which has a cleverly constructed looped narrative that runs in reverse. It begins with two men having sex, then goes to them meeting, and ends with one of them in bed watching laptop footage of the sex he’ll be having later. Highly explicit, highly enjoyable.

Dear Jiz

Beautifully shot in black and white, this short features genderqueer icon and genre-busting porn star Jiz Lee, using voiceover to explore some of the many fan letters received. Hearing how Jiz has helped others to explore and accept their gender identities and sexuality, this film is a powerful, yet touching reminder of Jiz’s impact in the porn industry.